Egg Fried Rice

 #sweetnspicyaromas

Chinese egg fried rice is an all time favourite of kids and adults . 

Made with very little oil and lots of veggies along with eggs is a perfect one meal dish for brunch, lunch as well as dinner . 

An all time hit for functions and parties too . 

So this summer make this yummy authentic restaurant style Egg Fried Rice at home . 

Hakka Noodles

After a long busy day when you are totally exhausted and hungry the first thing which comes to your mind is having something hot and refreshing .

And when that hot refreshing is none other than noodles it is enjoyed by all .... 

Maggi noodles are ideal when you really don' t have any energy to cook , but I prefer hakka noodles though it takes little more time than Maggi .... 

I always feel that adding some more vegetables does increase the nutrional value and taste too ..... 

You can use carrots , french beans , corn , mushroom , spring onions , capsicum , cabbage whichever veggies are available in your kitchen .... 

I though used only spring onions and capsicum as I did not have anything else ...... 

Ingredients : 

1 pack Hakka Noodles

1 small bunch of spring onions 

1 capsicum 

1 tbsp - soya sauce 

2/3 garlic flakes finely chopped 

1/2 tsp pepper powder

1 tsp vinegar 

1 tsp chilli sauce ( optional ) 

2 tbsp oil 

salt to taste 

Method : 

Boil water in a big vessel and cook the noodles till they are just cooked . 

Take care not to cook them too soft as they become mushy and ruin the taste . 

Drain the water and rinse the noodles in running water .

Apply little oil to prevent them from sticking . 

Heat oil in a non stick pan and add chopped garlic .

Add capsicum and spring onions too . 

Stir for 3 to 4 minutes and add all the sauces vinegar and salt . 

Finally add the rinsed noodles .

Stir well till they are well coated with oil and sauce . 

Serve hot . 

Cantonese Sweet N Sour Chicken

Ingredients :

For the chicken :

1/2 Kg ..................boneless chicken cubes
1 tbsp...................corn flour
1..........................egg
1/2 tsp ................pepper powder
1/2 tsp................salt

For dredging the chicken :

2 tbsp...................maida
2 tbsp...................rice flour
2 tbsp..................corn flour


For the Sauce :

6 tbsp.....................Maggie Hot and Sweet Ketchup
2 tbsp.....................tomato ketchup
2 tsp.......................vinegar
1 tsp......................chilly powder
1 tsp......................sugar

Vegetables :

1 .....................onion ( chopped roughly )
1 ....................capsicum ( chopped roughly )
1 ..................cucumber ( peeled  and cubed)
1/2 cup..........canned pineapple ( cubed)

Method :

Marinate the chicken with egg, pepper powder, salt and cornflour and set aside for half an hour.

In a plate mix maida, rice flour and corn flour.

Dip the chicken pieces in this dry mixture and fry them till half cooked.

When they cool again refry them till golden brown and crisp.

Heat all the ingredients given under the sauce and let the mixture thicken a bit.

Remove it from gas and keep aside.

Heat 1 tbsp oil in  a pan and saute onions, capsicum and cucumber for 2 to 3 minutes .

Add the prepared sauce and bring it to a boil.

Add the crisp chicken pieces and pineapple cubes .

Mix well and cook just for 2 more minutes.

Serve hot with noodels or fried rice.

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Cantonese Scallion Pancakes

Last month for the  IFC (International Food Challenge )  we had to make some Chinese Cantonese dishes and I had made these beautiful pancakes along with Wonton Soup , Moon Cakes and Sweet n Sour Chicken.

This event is started by Saras and Shobana and I have already posted spiral-moon-cakes for this challenge.

 Theses pancakes are very simple to make and taste yummy. The addition of Spring onions makes them crispy and tasty. Serve it along with any sauce of your choice .

Ingredients : 


For the Pancakes :

2 cups .....................Wheat flour
3 to 4 tbsp.................oil
2 cups ........................spring onion green ( very finely minced)
salt

For the Sauce :

2 tbsp..............soy sauce
1 tbsp...............vinegar
pinch of .............red dry chilly flakes
1/2 tsp.............dry roasted sesame seeds
1/2 tsp...............sugar

Method :

For the Pancakes :

Make a soft dough with flour, salt , oil and hot water and knead it well.

Cover it with a warm towel and set it aside for 1/2 an hour.

Make 6 to 8 balls of the equal size and roll each ball into a thin circle.

Apply some oil and sprinkle some salt on the rolled circle.

Now spread the minced spring onion greens evenly on it and roll the pancake as in the picture.

Again roll it in spiral and press with your hands to flatten it.

Now finally roll the pan cake and cook the pancakes in a pan smeared with oil.

Cook on both sides applying oil.

For the Sauce :

Mix all the ingredients given under sauce .

Cut the pancakes into wedges and serve with the sauce.

Vegetable Wonton Noodle Soup ( for IFC )

It is correctly said that the dinner should be light but still I always feel that  it should also have all the constituents of a balanced diet.

 And at such times what can be better than a noodle based soup or a filling salad ? 

This Wonton Soup gives you all that and much more..... veggies, carbohydrates and plus the deliciousness makes you want it more.

 This is also a super filling soup and when had with rice noodles makes a complete meal by itself.


Ingredients :

For the Wonton Wrappers :

1/2 cup ...................all purpose flour
pinch of salt

For the filling :

2 tbsp.................minced carrot
2 tbsp.................minced onion
2 tbsp.................minced cabbage
1 / 2 tsp..............soy sauce
1/4 tsp.................pepper powder
salt

For the soup :

4 cups ..................water
2 ..........................maggie masala cubes.
2 tbsp...................chilly garlic sauce
1 tsp.....................minced ginger
1 tsp....................minced garlic
1 tsp....................pepper powder
2 tbsp.................soy sauce
2 tbsp.................cabbage ( stripes)
2 tbsp................carrot ( cut into very thin sticks)
1/4 cup................spring onion (chopped)
1 tbsp....................corn flour
1 small packet ...........( thin rice noodles)
1 tbsp.........................sesame oil

Method :

To make Wontons :

Make a stiff dough of maida, salt and just enogh water .
Roll it into a thin chapati and cut out the squares.
Keep a square on working floor and fill it with 1/2 tsp filling.
Seal  the two corners of the square to make a triangle and again fold on the triange as shown in the picture.

Bring the two edges together and seal them to form the shape as shown in the picture.
Prepare all the wontons in a similar way and keep aside.


To make the Soup :

Boil  3 to 4 cups water and add 2 maggie masala cubes.

Add all the sauces , ginger garlic and pepper powder and mix well.

Add all the veggies except spring onions .

Add the prepared wontons and cook for 10 minutes.

When they are cooked they will come up and float on the surface of the soup.

Mix cornflour in 1/2 cup water and add to the boiling soup.

Simmer the soup till it thicken.

Boil the noodles separately in lots of water and drain the water.

Add these noodles to the soup.

Add spring onions.

Cook the soup for 2 more minutes .

Serve hot.

Spiral Moon Cakes ( for International Food Challenge)

International Food Challenge or (IFC ) is a new event which has started from this month and we the members will be posting a international recipe given by our host for that month. This challenge is started by two lovely bloggers  Saras and  Shobana .

This months host was Saras herself and she recommended the Cantonese Cuisine one of the main cuisines from China.

 Five unique dishes were given to us to choose from and we had to make any one or more from them. Of them I chose Spiral moon cake which is a sweet and is a very unique recipe.

 I had never heard this name before and they looked simply wonderful . The method though looks time consuming is really worth all the efforts and the taste of these cakes is simply amazing. The crispy outsides and the soft and tasty insides melt in your mouth.

I loved preparing this dish . I have also made few other Cantonese dishes from the given list which I will be posting in future. So now off to the recipe.

Ingredients For the Dough :

Water Dough :

100 gm ................maida
1 tsp.....................sugar pd
2 tbsp....................cold butter
water

Oil Dough : 

1 cup ................maida
1/2 cup..............oil
1/2 tsp...............cinnamon powder
few drop.............green colour
salt

For the filling :

2 no.................sweet potatoes ( boiled , peeled n smashed)
2 tbsp...............milk powder
1 tbsp..............ghee
3 tbsp..............sugar
few drops........pink colour
pinch of salt

Method  :

For Filling :

Heat ghee in a pan and all smased sweet potatoes.
Add sugar, salt and milk powder and stir till the mixture thickens.
Add the colour, mix well and remove from gas.
Let the mixture cool.

Water dough :

Mix all ingredients except water to resemble bread crumbs.
Add water slowly and knead to a soft non sticky dough.
Cover with damp cloth and set aside for 15 minutes.

Oil dough :

Sift all ingredients and again knead the same way as water dough.
Cover with damp cloth and rest for 15 mintues.

Making the moon cakes : 

Now make equal number of balls of both the doughs.
Take the water dough ball and keep the oil dough ball inside it.

Close the water dough ball and roll it lightly into a circle.

Now roll it again like a snail to form a cylindrical shape.

Once again roll this cylinder into long thin strip and cut it in two equal parts.

With the cut side facing down again roll a puri shape out of it.
Fill it with a the sweet potato filling and close the edges carefully.

Arrange them on  a greased tray with the sealed edges down.
Bake for half a hour or till light golden at 180 degrees.

Chinese Vegetable Stir Fry ( Vegan - Thursdays )

Nowadays we all are aware of the the importance of vegetables in our diet. To include fruits and vegetables of different colours is the need of the day as they provide us variety of  vitamins n nutrients .

For e.g  red colour in fruits n vegetables means they are rich in lycopene , whereas orange colour is an indicator of the presence of  beta-carotene. Greens are rich in chlorophyll and purple coloured food gives us Vit - C.

So make sure to have at least 2 to 3 different coloured fruits and vegetables daily to keep fit.
This simple and colourful stir fry can be made with any combinations that you like. Just make sure to include as many different colours as possible .

This stir fry is very easy to make and can be had with noodles, rotis or even pulavs. Even kids who are otherwise fussy over eating vegetables enjoy this dish due to its chinese way of preparation.

Today also being the last thursday of the month I am posting this super nutritious dish for our  vegan-thursdays  a theme started by Priya


Ingredients :

100 gms ..............................french beans
100 gms..............................capsicum
2.....................................carrots
10 to 15 ...........................garlic flakes
1 tbsp...............................pepper powder
1 tbsp..........................soy sauce
1 tbsp.........................oil
salt

Method :

Wash the vegetables thoroughly.

String the beans and cut them into thin long stripes.

Cut the capsicum and carrots also in a similar way.

Heat  oil in a pan and add crushed garlic flakes .

When the garlic becomes crisp and golden add carrots.

Keep the flame high and stir constantly.

Add soy sauce .

After 2  minutes add french beans and continue stirring for 5 more minutes.

Add pepper powder and salt.

At the time of serving add capsicum and cook just for 2 minutes.

Try to maintain the crispiness of the vegetables as much as possible.

Serve hot with rotis or rice.

Chilly Baby Corn

Some days back I had bought a packet of babycorn from the mall. I like to keep babycorns, mushrooms, canned pineapples handy so if unexpected guests turn up you are ever ready to cook up a great meal in no time without worrying.

Chilly baby corn is one of the most easy and yummy dish which will never go wrong . It can be used simply as starter or as a side dish with fried rice or noodles. This dish hardly takes 10 to 15 minutes to be prepared.
Since no guests turned up and I had one packet left I decided to make it for us and thoroughly enjoyed it with the vegetable fried rice.



Ingredients :

10 to 12................baby corns
1 bunch.................spring onion
1.........................capsicum.
1tsp ....................cornflour
2 tbsp..................tomato ketchup
1tsp....................chilly sauce
1 tsp...................chilly powder ( if you like it hot)
1tsp....................soy sauce
1 tsbp....................garlic (very finely chopped)
2tbsp......................oil
salt

Method :

Wash the baby corns and par boil them for 10 minutes.
Drain the water and apply the  ketchup, chilly sauce, soy sauce, chopped garlic, salt and cornflour
to the baby corn and keep aside for some time.

In the meanwhile cut capsicums into long stripes and chop the spring onion .

Heat oil in a non stick pan and add capsicum and spring onion.
Cook for 2 to 3 mintutes on high flame taking care not to overcook the vegetables.
Now add the marinated baby corns along with the marinade and stir for 5 minutes .
Can serve it as a starter or even as a dry side dish with fried rice or noodles.


Note : Add very little salt to the dish as all the three sauces already have salt in it. You may not be required to add salt at all.

Vegetable Dimsums

If we plan to go out for lunch or dinner my first choice  invariably is chinese. I love the chinese flavours , though many say that the chinese we get in India in suited to Indian palate only and the original chinese flavour are quite different.

I like to try out various starters and one of my recent favourites has been dimsums.

This steamed starter is not only tasty and delicous but can also be had by every one as it has negligible oil content and you can create your own fillings which makes this dish most versatile.

If desired maida can also be replaced by wheat flour but then the taste will change , no doubt it will be a healthier option , if you want to make it regularly at home for the kids.

Ingredients :

2 cups ........................Maida
1/2 cup......................finely chopped carrots
1/2 cup......................finely chopped cabbage
1/2 cup .....................finely chopped coriander leaves
1 tsp.........................garlic paste
1tsp..........................pepper powder
1 tbsp.......................oil
salt


Method :



Knead a soft but firm dough with  maida, water and salt and keep aside.

In a pan heat oil and add cabbage and garlic paste.
Saute till it is half cooked.

Now add carrots and again saute for 2 to 3 minutes.
Add salt and pepper powder and remove from the gas.

When cooled add the chopped corinader and mix well.







Make small balls of the dough and roll small puris out of it.

Add 1 to 2 tsp of the above mixture and fold into crescent shape (like in karanji or gujiya)

You get a separate steamer for making dimsums which has to be kept in pressure cooker.

Arrange the dimsums in the steamer and cook each bach  without pressure for 15 minutes.

You can also steam in a normal  idli maker for  15 minutes .

Serve hot with a ketchup of shezwan sauce of your choice.

Sending these dimsum to the following events :

sumeesculinary kids-delight

lets-cook-for-kids at simplysensaionalfood












my-event-spotlight  hosted by cuisinedelights











celebrate-easter-event of jagrutidhanecha

Soy Pepper Mushrooms

Mushrooms as we all know are rich in  protiens and iron and also is a good source of vitamin D. Vegetarians can use them as they are a good meat  substitute.

This mushroom dish can be prepared in a matter of minutes and is one of the easiest dishes. It required minimum or masala and can be had as a starter during parties or even as a side dish with fried rice .

Ingredients :

15 to 20 .....................Mushrooms
1 tbsp.........................cornflour
1tbsp..........................soy sauce
4 to 5 ........................garlic cloves (crushed)
1 tbsp.......................pepper powder
2 tsp..........................oil
salt

Method  :

Clean and wash the mushroom thoroughly and pat them dry.
If big cut them in half or you can keep them whole.
Sprinkle them with cornflour and keep them aside for some time.
This ensures that they don't ooze out water while cooking and remain crisp.
In a pan add  oil and add crushed garlic.
Keep the flame high and add mushrooms.
Add soy sauce, pepper powder and keep stirring them for 5 minutes.
Put off the burner and add salt .
This prevents them from watering and they remain crisp.

 
Linking this to


                     @ Shama's easy2cookrecipes

Chicken Lollipop

I am sure that this dish is so popular that it needs no introduction at least in India. Adults and children both love these juicy tangy lollipops . So here's the recipe for it . I personally feel that the lollipops do not have much of the flesh and most of the times do this same recipe with chicken legs .

Ingredients :

8 to 10 .................Raw chicken lollipops
1 tbsp....................Soy sauce
1 tbsp...................garlic paste
1 tsp......................garam masala
2 tsp......................chilly powder
3 tbsp......................tomato ketchup
1 tbsp.....................cornflour
1..............................egg beaten
salt as per taste



Method :

Wash the raw lollipops thoroughly .
Add soy sauce, garlic paste , garam masala, chilly powder and ketchup.
Add cornflour and beaten egg and mix well .
The pieces should be well coated with the marinade.
Marinate for at least 2 to 3 hours.
Use can also marinate and keep overnight.
Deep fry in the oil and serve hot .

Garlic Coriander Rice

Rice is the staple diet of most of the Indians especially from south . But even in north we have rice specialities like dum biryanis and pulavs. Todays rice is very easy but a tasty preparation . Though it is chinese it  can be had with or without any Indian vegetable dish also. There is no need of daal if a gravy vegetable is served with this rice.

Ingredients :

2 cups ....................rice (any variety)
1tbsp......................green chillies chopped
2tbsp.....................garlic flakes chopped
2 to 3 tbsp.................coriander chopped
2tbsp.........................oil
salt

Method :

Heat oil and stir fry chopped chillies and garlic.
Wash the rice 2 to 3 times and drain it .
Add this rice to the oil and stir fry for 5 minutes.
Add 4 to 5 cups of water depending on the variety of rice .
Add salt and chopped corainder and cook till done.




This entry  goes to following events 

Sumee's festive-feast
rice recipes @ amritavishal
lets-cook-21-potluck @ tickling palates 
ginger-and-garlic-event @ cook'sjoy 

Chicken Dimsums

First of all I would like to thank Achu from tangymind  and Jagruti from  Jagruti's cooking odyssey  for giving me the award for best innovative dish for my recipe on tavsalli (cucumber-cake) in their event . Do visit their blogs for some great recipes.

Chinese cuisine though an International cuisine , has become so familiar to the Indian kitchen that we have regularly started eating as well as making it at home. Dishes like manchurian, fried rice etc are liked by all.

Nowadays there is a craze of momos and dimsums . They are very similar to our steamed dishes and are oil free and very nutritious. I am posting the recipe of Chicken dimsums today. It is a very healthy and yummy dish , simple to prepare and mildly spiced.



 Ingredients :

For the filling :

200 gm ....................chicken mince
1 ............................onion(finely chopped and  
                                sauted)
2 tsp.........................pepper powder
1 tsp.........................soy sauce
2tbsp.......................fresh coriander finely chopped
salt
sugar

for the outer covering :

2 cups ..............maida
2 tbsp................rice flour
1 tsp.................oil
salt
water




Method :

Outer covering :

Make a dough by mixing maida, rice flour, salt and enough water and oil.
The dough should not be very soft.


Filling :

Boil the chichen mince with 4 to 5 garlic flakes in pressure cooker till soft.

When cold grind it in the mixer.

Saute the chopped onions till light pint and transparent.
Mix this ground paste with onion, pepper pd, salt, sugar, soy sauce and coriander.

How to Proceed :

Roll out small puri shapes from the dough.
Put little stuffing in the middle and fold as shown .
You get a special dimsum maker to steam these dimsums.
But you can also use your pressure cooker or idli maker for the same.
Add little water at the base and steam these dimsums in a similar way like idlis or dhoklas.

Serve with szechuan sauce.

Prawns in pepper sauce

A very simple, no hassle dish , yet sure to give you lots of praises. A must try for all non-vegetarians.

Ingredients

Prawns medium - 25 no

Potatoes cut in  big pieces - 3 no (optional)

finely chopped onion - 1

finely chopped garlic flakes - 10 to 12 no

pepper powder - 2 to 3 tbsp full

cornflour -2tsp

soya sauce

salt

butter to cook

Method

Shell the prawns and remove the black thread present on the back side of the prawns.

Heat butter in the kadhai .

When hot add chopped onion and garlic.

When onion becomes transparent add the potatoes.

When the potatoes are half cooked add prawns and stir till they turn light pink.

This should take 5 to 10 minutes.

Add salt and pepper powder and cook till soft, dont overcook or prawns will get rubbery.

While serving heat the kadhai and add cornflour paste make in half glass water for thickness.